Wrapped tightly in sleeping bags to keep them from freezing in frigid conditions, Australian winemaker Sirromet's bottles slowly make their way across the vast Mongolian landscape on the back of a yak.

With her blotted red lipstick, perky coiffed curls and fitted 1940s skirt suit, Constanze Pelzer looks like she's stepped off a World War II film set. From head to toe, the 49-year-old German is the picture of 1940s elegance -- from the little glasses and striking jewellery to her red sling-backs, her entire outfit is authentic.

At the start of September 1914, after just one month of war in Europe, the German army were at the gates of Paris. The word on the street was that Emperor Wilhelm II had already booked a dinner table on the Champs-Elysees.

Until last year, the few tourists who visited the small west African town of Ouidah were likely headed to the Gateway of No Return, a massive monument to the area's bleak history as a slave trading hub.

From rooms kitted out like medical clinics where couples can play "doctors and nurses" to grottos where it is permanently Christmas, Japan's "Love Hotels" cater to almost every taste, offering a few hours of reasonably-priced privacy in a crowded country.